(5/3) All of the backhoes, jackhammers and
other construction equipment is gone from
South Seton Avenue and what’s left behind is a
smooth new road, but it’s what is underneath
that is more important.

“Everything on South Seton Avenue is
serviced by a new main,” said Mayor James
Hoover. “We modified the scope of work and
improved the sidewalk and while the street was
torn up, we had them run conduit to put street
lights in.”

“There’s an airtight (stormwater) system
that will last 100 years under there now,”
said Kirby Delauter, whose company W.F.
Delauter and Sons did the road work. “And what
you have on top is a brand new street.”

The work that has been going on since Fall
2006 and traffic has been detoured around
stretches of the road during work hours.

Hoover said the project “will improve the
quality and appearance of South Seton and make
it look better.”

However, the work needed to be done because
the sewer and water lines under the road were
undersized and beyond their life expectancy.

“They were clay lines,” Delauter said.
“Some weren’t in bad shape but many were worn
out.”

Because South Seton Avenue is a state road,
there were certain conditions that governed
when the work could and couldn’t be performed.

“Had we not had those restrictions probably
could have cut that project time by 25-30
percent,” Hoover said.

The project cost just under $1 million and
was financed with a 1.1 percent loan from the
Maryland Department of the Environment.

All in all, Delauter said the project went
smoothly and the state-imposed work
restrictions had been anticipated.

“The town’s been good to work for,”
Delauter said. “They tell you what they want
and are fair about it. Some places like to
play games.”